A Museum of Journeys in a Chest of Drawers February 29th – April 17th

**See opinion poll information at the bottom of this page.

Please note that this exhibition and the Gallery Cafe are currently unable to accept visitors until further notice. See the Virtual Tour here!

This participatory storytelling project will culminate with an exhibition launch from 12:00-16:00 on February 29th. The project unites two diverse and stigmatised communities through interactive artworks, assisting in building support networks for those affected by migration, isolation and poor mental health.

Through a programme of workshops led by artists Sharon Campbell and Rachel Ramchurn, participants produced artworks inspired by personal effects and memories that represent their individual journeys. By sharing stories, this project aims to challenge xenophobic and mental health stereotypes through artworks that identify shared human experiences. 

Visit the project’s website here.

The lead artists worked with and will exhibit the artwork by two groups; Arc’s Post-Challenge wellbeing group in Stockport and Global Sistaz United, a supportive group for Refugee women in Nottingham.

“We hope to positively cross barriers around attitudes towards mental ill health and refugee status women, looking at the commonality between us, the human themes we share, despite our apparent differences.”

Create your own poem at the launch using a special Poetry Making Machine from words from the exhibitions themes!

With partners, Arc, Global Sistaz United, New Arts Exchange Nottingham,  funded by Arts Council England.

Opinion Polls

Please be aware that we are not aligning ourselves with any political viewpoint. We realise that you may agree or disagree with the statements and we are not damning anyone’s opinions, but we have researched common sterotypes and provided facts below related to mental health and refugee status to illustrate stigma that some people face.

Sat 1/2/20 (MH recovery): False. Studies show that people with mental health problems can recover, some completely. Recovery refers to the process in which people are able to live, work, learn, and participate fully in their communities. There are more treatments, services, and community support systems than ever before, and they work. Many people manage their condition effectively lifelong .
Source: Anon. ‘Mental Health Myths and Facts,’ MentalHealth.gov, Online, 29 August 2017, www.mentalhealth.gov/basics/mental-health-myths-facts.

Tues 4/2/20 (Refugee Western Europe): False. Over 86% of refugees live in developing countries, with Turkey taking the most refugees according to figures from March 2016. There were around 6.7 million Syrian refugees worldwide at the end of 2018 and the UK has resettled just 17,051 of them.
According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), by the end of 2018 there were 126,720 refugees, 45,244 pending asylum cases and 125 stateless persons in the UK. That’s around one quarter of a percent (0.26%) of the UK’s total population.
Source: UNHCR. ‘Ten Myths About the Refugee and Migrant Crisis,’ UNA-UK, Online, 03 May 2016, www.una.org.uk/magazine/1-2016/10-myths-about-refugee-and-migrant-crisis
Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme. ‘Facts about Refugees,’ Refugee Action, Online, 2019 www.refugee-action.org.uk/about/facts-about-refugees

Third post Thurs 6/2/20 (MH arts NHS saving): True. “Arts-on-prescription” for mental health could save the NHS around £216 per patient and can reduce GP visits by 37%.
Source: Creative Health. ‘Arts on prescription can save the NHS money,’ Paintings in Hospitals, Online, Date Unknown www.paintingsinhospitals.org.uk/65-arts-on-prescription-can-save-the-nhs-money

Fourth post Mon 9/2/20 (MH wellbeing at work money saving): £8 billion in 2009. Better mental health support in the workplace can save UK businesses £8 billion per year, probably more today, mainly due to increased productivity and attendance at work.

• 1 in 6.8 people are experience mental health problems in the workplace (14.7%). (2009)
• Evidence suggests that 12.7% of all sickness absence days in the UK can be attributed to mental health conditions.(2014) 

Source: ‘Mental Health Statistics: Mental Health at Work,’ Mental Health Foundation, Online, Date Unknown, www.mentalhealth.org.uk/statistics/mental-health-statistics-mental-health-work

Fifth Post Tues 11/2/20 (R asylum seekers work and benefits): False. Asylum seekers are not allowed to claim benefits or work in the UK.
Source: Government of The United Kingdom. ‘Facts about Refugees,’ Refugee Action, Online, Date Unknown www.refugee-action.org.uk/about/facts-about-refugees

Sixth post Fri 14/2/20 (MH work society contribution): False. You probably know someone with a mental health problem and don’t even realise it, because many people with mental health problems are highly active and productive members of our communities.
Source: USA,gov. ‘Mental Health Myths and Facts,’ MentalHealth.gov, Online, 29 August 2017, www.mentalhealth.gov/basics/mental-health-myths-facts

Seventh post Mon 16/2/20 (Refugee, migrant, asylum seeker definition): False. The press frequently interchange these terms but they are not the same thing. A ‘migrant’ can be used as an umbrella term for people on the move, but a migrant is only an ‘asylum seeker’ if they have fled their homeland and submitted an asylum application in another country. They gain ‘refugee’ status once the host country is satisfied that the individual would be in danger if they returned home.
Source: ‘Ten Myths About the Refugee and Migrant Crisis,’ UNA-UK, Online, 03 May 2016, www.una.org.uk/magazine/1-2016/10-myths-about-refugee-and-migrant-crisis

Eighth post Tues 18/2/20 (MH snap out of it): False. Having a mental health problem is an illness that needs medical and therapeutic treatment as much as any other ailment, you wouldn’t ask someone to ‘snap out’ of a broken leg?! Many factors contribute to mental health problems, from biological factors, to life experiences, or a combination of the two.
Source: USA.gov. ‘Mental Health Myths and Facts,’ MentalHealth.gov, Online, 29 August 2017, www.mentalhealth.gov/basics/mental-health-myths-facts

Ninth post Fri 21/2/20 (EU spending refugee/border): False. The EU spent €2billion on border security in the 2010s compared to €700million on refugees.
Source: Daniel Trilling, ‘Five Myths About the Refugee Crisis’, The Guardian, Online, 05 June 2018 www.theguardian.com/news/2018/jun/05/five-myths-about-the-refugee-crisis

Tenth post Mon 24/2/20 (Mental health issues = dangerous): False. “Most people with mental health problems are not violent and most people who are violent are (legally) not mentally ill.”- Professor Dame Sally Davies UK Chief Medical Officer.
Some people automatically think there is a link between mental health issues and being a danger to others, and this is often reinforced by sensationalised stories in the media. However, the most common mental health problems have no significant link to violent behaviour. The proportion of people living with a mental health problem who commit a violent crime is extremely small and those with mental health problems are more likely to be the victims of violence or harm themselves. In 2013, 1,876 suicides were recorded among mental health inpatients in the UK, compared to 51 homicides. Many people are still worried about talking about how they’re feeling, or seeking help, because of the fear and stigma of being seen as dangerous.
Source: ‘Mental Health Problems: An Introduction,’ Mind Charity, Online, October 2017, www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/mental-health-problems-introduction/stigma-misconceptions

Chakkalackal, UF et al. ‘Challenging Myths and Stereotypes: Violence and Mental Health,’ Fundamental Facts about Mental Health 2016, London, 2016 https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/sites/default/files/fundamental-facts-about-mental-health-2016.pdf